Nearly a year after the Titanic disaster, an American billionaire has announced his intention to return to the Titanic wreck to prove it can be done safely.
Larry Connor, 74, is investing $20 million in his new submarine with the company Triton Submarines, who confirmed The independent that there are plans to visit the wreck sometime in 2026.
He works with Patrick Lahey, who has more than 40 years of submarine experience, as joint CEO of Triton Submarines.
Lahey previously raised concerns about the actions of OceanGate, the company behind last year’s tragedy that left five people dead.
The underwater designer, who visited the deepest point of the ocean with Connor, described OceanGate’s approach to commercial underwater exploration as “predatory” for The times.
He was a close friend of Titanic expert Paul-Henri Nargeolet, 73, who died in the disaster, and explained that Stockton Rush, 61, CEO of OceanGate, was so manipulative that he could “convince someone who knew and understood the risks ‘ to proceed to. his “thing” of a submarine.
Connor, a real estate billionaire from Ohio, told us The Wall Street Journal: “I want to show people around the world that although the ocean is extremely powerful, it can be beautiful, enjoyable and truly life-changing if you treat it right.”
The new submarine
The new submarine will be known as the Triton 4000/2 Abyssal Explorer. The 4000 in the name refers to the depth it can reach, which is slightly more than the Titanic’s 3,800 meters.
It has a much smaller capacity than the doomed Titan submarine, which seats five people, and only has room for two.
Triton Submarines has confirmed this The independent that, unlike OceanGate, they currently have no plans to offer commercial voyages to the Titanic.
However, they do offer commercial ventures, which can cost the Marina Trench as much as $750,000.
Conor explained that while Lahey had wanted to build a submarine like the Triton 4000/2 Abyssal Explorer for some time, the technology to create it did not exist until recently.
“Patrick has been thinking about and designing this for more than ten years. But we didn’t have the materials and technology,” he said The Wall Street Journal. “You couldn’t have built this submarine five years ago.”
The new submarine will reportedly cost $20 million to produce.
“We had a client, a wonderful man,” Lahey said. “He called me [in the wake of the OceanGate disaster] and said, ‘You know, what we need to do is build a submarine that we can dive to [Titanic-level depths] repeatedly and safely and show the world that you can do that, and that Titan was a device.’”
The new submarine is advertised as the world’s deepest acrylic diving submarine with a revolutionary “gull wing design” that allows it to easily maneuver at depth.
The Titan, meanwhile, had a controversial carbon fiber hull and it is believed that the repeated voyages to the Titanic weakened it over time, culminating in its ‘catastrophic implosion’ last June.
OceanGate charged $250,000 for a trip to the Titanic and had passengers sign a waiver accepting the possibility of death.
Triton submarines: depth and safety
Triton Submarines has already established itself as a leader in its field, completing several record-breaking dives, including the aforementioned voyage to the Marina Trench.
The trench, the deepest part of the ocean, is 10,984 meters deep – more than double the depth at which the Titanic lies at 3,800 metres.
Unlike OceanGate’s self-proclaimed ‘experimental’ submarine, Triton Submarines have safety accreditation, including the Triton 36000/2, the only fully accredited submarine capable of reaching full ocean depth.
The company’s safety data sheet states: “Triton Submarines does not produce experimental vehicles, but series-built, compliant submarines supplied with full certification by an external classification society.”
The Titanic wreck site
There are currently no plans for a crewed voyage to the Titanic wreck this year.
In July, RMS Titanic Inc, which owns the salvage rights to the wreck, plans to send a robot to the site. This will be their first trip to the wreck since 2010.
As revealed on their website: “This expedition will use cutting-edge technology to focus on high-resolution imaging and photography of the site to preserve the legacy of the Titanic for future generations and scientific research.
“It will be conducted by ROVs (remotely operated vehicles) to survey the wreck site and debris field. The captured images will reveal important new insights into the condition of the site, areas and artefacts at risk, and will contribute to the ongoing conservation efforts and educational initiatives already underway.”
But despite the reportedly scientific nature of the research, the US government filed a motion last year to stop the trip, citing the site’s status as a cemetery.
There have been no public updates since and the RMS Titanic Inc website continues to promote the expedition.
The Titan investigation
Following the discovery of the Titan’s wreckage near the bow of the Titanic last June, it was announced that the submarine had been lost in a catastrophic implosion.
It is believed that this took place shortly after the submarine lost contact with its ship, an hour and 45 minutes after its dive to the Titanic.
OceanGate founder Stockton Rush, 61, Hamish Harding, 58, and Shahzada Dawood, 48, and Suleman Dawood, 19, all died in the disaster and were reportedly killed instantly.
An investigation was launched into what happened and the US Coast Guard confirmed it The independent that as of May 2024 it is still in the ‘fact-finding’ phase.
A spokesperson for the Coast Guard said this The independent: “The Titan Marine Board of Investigation (MBI) remains in the fact-finding phase of the investigation and is gathering all relevant evidence and information.
“An expected completion date is not available.
“The final part of the fact-finding phase will include a public hearing, and the MBI will provide notice at least 60 days in advance of the public hearing.”
The independent has contacted Triton Submarines and RMS Titanic Inc for further comment.